Tear-out coupling and water line

ABSTRACT

A unitary removable barrier for installation in a cylindrical water line to selectively block the water line to passage of water therethrough. The unitary removable barrier is composed of a single piece rubber body having at least one cylindrical section sized to receive upstream and downstream pipes of the water line. A unitary rubber planar disc molded with the cylindrical section is of a circular circumference and which completely blocks the water line but which is selectively removable from the cylindrical section thus removing the barrier to the passage of the waste through the line.

RELATED PATENT APPLICATIONS

This application is continuation patent application of U. S. Ser. No.10/446,623, filed Dec. 8, 2003, now abandoned which in turn is a utilitypatent application based on a PCT application international applicationnumber PCT/US02/01419, international filing date Jan. 17, 2002, which inturn is based on U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/765,758, entitled“Tear-Out Rubber Coupling,” filed Jan. 19, 2001, now U.S. Pat.No.6,575,475. These related applications are incorporated herein byreference and made a part of this application.

TECHNICAL FIELD OF INVENTION

The present invention deals with a unitary removable barrier forinstallation in a cylindrical water line for temporarily blocking thepassage of water through the line. When plumbing a structure such as ahouse intended to carry water, the structure goes through several wasteline tests to confirm the integrity of the various plumbing joints. Thisrequires temporarily blocking the waste line so that the water lineswithin the structure can be filled and leaks detected. The presentinvention involves an improved means of temporarily blocking the waterwaste line in order to create a suitable water head to conduct suchtesting.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

When plumbing a structure such as a house, the structure is subjected toat least two different waste water tests. A first test is intended todetermine the integrity of the water lines at ground or slab by fillingthe structure's waste lines with water to create a pressure head. Asecond test is conducted at “top-out” meaning that after the structureis vented and tubs, sinks and other fixtures are installed, the wastelines are again filled with water to create yet another pressure head.Under pressure, the various lines are inspected for leakage prior to theinstallation of sheetrock which would obviously mask the detection ofany leakage.

As background, plumbers are required to “stub out” or create an externalwaste line outlet two or three feet from the perimeter of the structuralfoundation. The “stub out” line is typically capped off in order to runthe above-described water tests. There are a variety of currentlyavailable caps designed to accomplish this task. For example, a plumbermay employ a rubber cap with a stainless steel band. However, a rubbercap is prone to being blown off of the “stub out” if subjected tosufficient water head pressure. In order to prevent this from occurring,the plumber will oftentimes drive a wooden stake in front of the rubbercap. This entails a good deal of additional effort and is notparticularly effective in preventing blow-off. As an alternative, aplumber may glue the plastic test cap to the “stub out” which can beknocked off after the test has been conducted. However, this requiresapplying and setting a suitable adhesive which obviously must later beremoved once the test has been completed. At removal, the plumber islikely to get quite wet as the water head pressure is released. Thereare additional problems associated with caps employed at “stub out.” Forexample, when a sewer line to the street or septic is about to beconnected, the plumber is oftentimes not the party responsible formaking the connection. If someone else makes the connection who isunfamiliar with this process, the cap will be cut off or otherwiseremoved releasing the water head within the structure perhapsprematurely before the plumber has had an opportunity to check thestructure for leaks. Even if the plumber is the party responsible forconnecting the sewer line to the “stub out,” he may still be forced torelease his test and then recap the line after the connection has beenmade thus requiring that the water head be reestablished. This istime-consuming and also is a waste of water. Ideally, the plumber wouldlike to maintain a water head throughout the sheetrock process so thatany accidental nailing into the waste line would be visible by observingwater leakage.

In addition to the above, once the sewer has been connected, it istraditional for the plumber to return to the project to reset his wastelines at which point a plumber employs a wye, a one-eighth bend and aclean-out plug at the point where the sewer has been connected. Aplumber typically employs a long test ball which is inserted into theone-eighth band and wye and is inflated at the appropriate position. Thetest ball is intended to temporarily block the waste line to againcreate a suitable pressure head within the structure. However, thesetest balls are extremely expensive and by reducing pressure within thetest ball, they can be removed and oftentimes stolen from the job site.Further, they can inadvertently lose air, slip down the line and cause amajor stoppage which must be dealt with by excavating and exposing thesewer line. The air balls, which exhibit external ribs, crack afterrepeated usage and tend to leak under tests. Leakage from the side wallof the test ball as well as from its air stem obviously results in waterleakage to the sewer and reduction of water head thus reducing theeffectiveness of the test.

One way of dealing with this issue has been disclosed in U.S. Pat. No.5,507,501. The invention disclosed in the '501 patent is to adisk-shaped sealing device which is molded as an integral, unitarypiece. The sealing device comprises a circular disc and an angled flangeextending outwardly and upwardly from the perimeter of the circulardisc. The disc-shaped device fits snugly within a barrel of a plasticfitting such that the circular disc is coaxially received in the barrelof the plastic fitting and the angled flange mates with and lies againsta bevel in the barrel of the plastic fitting. A lug extends downwardlyfrom the circular disc whereby first and second elongate grooves areformed in one of the surfaces of the disc. It is taught that thedisc-shaped device can be ripped out of the barrel of the fitting so asto remove the device in its entirety from the fitting by pulling on thelug and ripping the circular disc along the first and second grooves ina spiral ripping motion that ultimately pulls the circular disc and theangled flange from the fitting.

Although the invention disclosed in the '501 patent constitutes adramatic improvement over devices of the prior art described above, it,itself, is not without its limitations. Specifically, the disc-shapedsealing device must be employed only in a waste line which will acceptan angled flange. As such, the device cannot be used when a water lineis provided with a consistent and uniform interior diameter throughoutits length. In addition, the disc-shaped sealing device must, itself, besealed to the receiving ledge or flange of a waste line to ensure thatthe disc remains in sealing engagement with the water line during tests.This requires either the use of a glue or wax to ensure that thedisc-shaped sealing device remains in place. It is hypothesized thatthese limitations have prevented the device described in the '501 patentfrom being universally accepted in the plumbing trade.

It is thus an object of the present invention to provide a means oftemporarily blocking a “stub out” or water line which can effectivelyand temporarily prevent passage of water through the waste line thuscreating a suitable pressure head within the structure while beingeasily removable from the waste line and while addressing all of thedrawbacks recited above.

These objects will be more readily apparent when considering thefollowing disclosure and appended drawings.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is directed toward a unitary removable barrier forinstallation in a cylindrical water line to selectively block the waterline to the passage of water therethrough. The unitary removable barrieris composed of a one-piece rubber body having at least one cylindricalsection having at least one cross-sectional area, longitudinal axis andsized to receive an upstream pipe and downstream pipe of the water line.The upstream pipe and downstream pipe are captured by said at least onecylindrical section either frictionally or by use of stainless steelbands. The unitary removable barrier includes a rubber disc molded as aunitary structure with said at least one cylindrical section which ischaracterized as being of circular circumference and which completelyblocks the water line when in place. The disc is provided with adiameter which is substantially perpendicular to the longitudinal axisand which is selectively removable from the cylindrical section thusremoving the barrier to the water line.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of one embodiment of a unitary removablebarrier of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a side plan view of the unitary removable barrier FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a top plan view of the unitary removable barrier of FIG. 1.

FIG. 4 is a side cross sectional view of a second embodiment of thepresent invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

In referring to FIG. 2, pipes 21 and 22 comprise “stub out” or“clean-out line” which, as noted, extends from a house or otherstructure for connection to a sewer or septic line. In a firstembodiment, the present invention is in the form of a coupling 10 forplacement between and to capture pipes 21 and 22 by frictionallyreceiving them within cylindrical section 11. In other words, the outerdiameter of pipes 21 and 22 approximate inner diameter 26 although thepresent invention contemplates the use of any well-known clamping meanssuch as stainless steel bands to ensure a watertight snug fit betweencylindrical section 11 and pipes 21 and 22 along longitudinal axis 20.

Unitary removable barrier 20 is composed of rubber. It is molded as aunitary article whereby cylindrical section 11 and planar disc section12 are of a single piece. In this regard, diameter 26 extending from thegeometric center of disc 12 and extending to the inside diameter ofcylindrical section 11 is substantially perpendicular to longitudinalaxis 20 passing through upstream and downstream cylindrical water line21 and 22. Again, as previously noted, as one embodiment, unitaryremovable barrier 10 is sized such that the inside diameter ofcylindrical section 11 as defined by the extremity of diameter 26 is tofrictionally receive water lines 21 and 22 along longitudinal axis 20.

When it is no longer desired to block the passage of water through thewater waste line as defined by pipes 21 and 22, circular disc 12 isremoved. This is ideally done by attaching a pull cord (30) to lug 13and withdrawing the cord from the water line through a wye or teetraditionally fabricated within such a line. Groove 14 is fabricatedwithin disc 12 helically extending from lug 13 and extending outwardlytoward the side wall of cylindrical section 11. Removal of disc 12 iscarried out when hydraulic testing of the plumbing system of structureis no longer required. As such, when disc 12 is removed, the waste waterline as established by pipes 21 and 22 is opened providing a free waterpath for the structure.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, it is noted thatupon the removal of planar disc 12, a portion of the disc remains asdefined by a ledge 15 of planar disc material. Ledge 15 is sized suchthat inner diameters 24 and 25 of cylindrical lines 21 and 22,respectively, coincide with the inner circumference of ledge 15 so thatan uninterrupted substantially uniform inner pipe diameter is createdthus minimizing any adverse effect that the present invention wouldotherwise have on the free flow of water through the subject waste line.Stated differently, when planar disc 12 is removed from cylindricalsection 11, ledge 15 of the planar disc remains providing a circularopening within cylindrical section 11 substantially equal to insidediameters 24 and 25 of upstream and downstream pipes 21 and 22.

To summarize, although others have taught the use of removable blockingmeans to selectively prevent water from passing through a waste line inorder to hydraulically test the plumbing of a structure, there have beenno prior attempts to construct such an element which works asconveniently and which provides less obstruction as the inventiondisclosed herein. The present invention requires no gluing, waxing orother sealing means to attach the removable blocking disc to the wastewater line. Further, in the embodiment show in FIGS. 1 through 3, uponits removal, the disc provides the line with an opening substantiallyequal to the inside diameter of the line itself. As such, thererepresents little or no obstruction to the line upon removal of thedisc.

In a second embodiment, reference is made to FIG. 4. In this instance,it is commonplace, for example, to provide PVC pipe 41, eminating from astructure, to act as a wasteline for connection to PVC pipe 42 of adifferent, in this instance, larger diameter. In such an installation,coupling 40, again composed of a unitary molded article is provided withupstream cylingical section 43 of a first (smaller) diameter and adownstream cylindrical section 44 of a second (larger) diameter.Cylindrical sections 43 and 44 are connected by diagonally extendingside wall 49 as shown.

As in the previous embodiment, cylindrical sections 43 and 44 of unitaryarticle 40 can be sized to frictionally capture pipes 41 and 42,respectively thus obviating the need for any further coupling means.However, any suitable capturing device can further be employed such asstainless steel bands 51 to ensure a water tight and secure fitting.

Again, as in the previous embodiment, unitary removable rubber barrier45 molded as a unitary article to cylindrical sections 43 and 44 andtransitional section 49 remains in place during test but is selectiveremovable after a suitable water pressure test has been conducted. Indoing so, pull cord 47, appended to lug 46 is drawn through a wye or tee(not shown) traditionally found within the typical water waste line. Thesame groove such as groove 14 shown in FIG. 1 can be fabricated withindisk 45 helically extending from lug 46 and extending outwardly towardthe side wall defined by cylindrical section 44.

As noted in the embodiment shown in FIG. 4, PVC pipes 41 and 42 do notabut one another although, ideally, pipe 42 is caused to abut removabledisc 45. As such, the unitary removable barrier 40 as depicted in FIG. 4acts to retain pipes 41 and 42 in a predetermined orientation wherebyvoid space 55 remains between the end of each pipe length.

1. A coupling used during testing of a water line including an upstreampipe with a wye or tee therein and a downstream pipe, said couplingcomprising a cylindrical wall member, and a planar disc disposed withinthe wall member substantially at a right angle to the cylindrical wallmember, said cylindrical wall member and planar disc being a singlepiece body molded from a resilient material as a unitary structure, saidplanar disc forming within the wall member on one side of the planardisc an upstream wall section sized to frictionally receive the upstreampipe and on the other side of the planar disc a downstream wall sectionsized to frictionally receive the downstream pipe, said planar discacting as barrier that prevents water from flowing from the upstreampipe into downstream pipe and being removable, with at least one scoreline therein enabling the disc to be detached from the cylindrical wallwhen only a pulling force is applied thereto so the disc is removed fromthe water line to enable water to flow through said water line, and apulling device attached to the planar disc, said pulling device having acord including a portion adapted to extend through the wye or tee in theupstream pipe that enables the planar disc to be detached from thecylindrical wall member while the coupling is connected to the upstreamand downstream pipes by applying only said pulling force using saidcord.
 2. The coupling of claim 1 where the coupling is made of rubber.3. The coupling of claim 1 where, upon removal of the planar disc, thereremains within the cylindrical wall member a ledge.
 4. The coupling ofclaim 1 where the upstream wall section and downstream wall section areeach of substantially the same diameters.
 5. The coupling of claim 1where the upstream wall section and a downstream wall section are ofdifferent diameters.
 6. A coupling used during testing of a water lineincluding an upstream pipe with a wye or tee therein and a downstreampipe, each pipe having a predetermined circumferential configuration,said coupling comprising a single piece body molded from a resilientmaterial as a unitary structure and including an upstream wall sectionhaving an internal circumferential configuration substantially the sameas the circumferential configuration of the upstream pipe, a downstreamwall section having an internal circumferential configurationsubstantially the same as the circumferential configuration of thedownstream pipe, a removable barrier wall disposed between the upstreamwall section and the downstream wall section that blocks the flow ofwater between the wall sections, said barrier wall including at leastone score line enabling the barrier wall to be detached from the bodywhen only a pulling force is applied thereto so the barrier wall isremoved from the water line to enable water to flow through said waterline, and a pulling device attached to the barrier wall, said pullingdevice having a cord including a portion adapted to extend through thewye or tee in the upstream pipe that enables the barrier wall to bedetached from the from the body while the coupling is connected to theupstream and downstream pipes by applying only said pulling force usingsaid cord.
 7. The coupling of claim 6 where the wall sections each havea cylindrical configuration with an internal circumferentialconfiguration that is cylindrical and said barrier wall is circular, andwhere, upon removal of the barrier wall, there remains within thecylindrical wall an annular ledge comprising barrier wall material thatforms a circular opening that provides a substantially uniform innerdiameter within the water line.
 8. A method of testing a water lineincluding an upstream pipe with a wye or tee therein coupled to adownstream pipe, each pipe having a predetermined circumferentialconfiguration, said method comprising the steps of (a) coupling thepipes together with a coupling comprising a single piece body moldedfrom a resilient material as a unitary structure and including anupstream wall section having an internal circumferential configurationsubstantially the same as the circumferential configuration of theupstream pipe, a downstream wall section having an internalcircumferential configuration substantially the same as thecircumferential configuration of the downstream pipe, a removablebarrier wall disposed between the upstream wall section and thedownstream wall section that blocks the flow of water through the waterline until removed, said barrier wall including at least one score lineenabling the barrier wall to be detached from the body when only apulling force is applied thereto so the barrier wall is removed toenable water to flow through said water line, and a pulling deviceattached to the barrier wall, said pulling device having a cordincluding a portion adapted to extend through the wye or tee in theupstream pipe that enables the barrier wall to be detached from the bodywhile the coupling is connected to the upstream and downstream pipes byapplying said pulling force using said cord, (b) inserting an end of theupstream pipe into the upstream wall section and inserting an end of thedownstream pipe into the downstream wall section, with the portion ofthe cord extending through the wye or tee in the upstream pipe, (c)testing the water line, and (d) after testing the water line, removingthe barrier wall by applying to said portion only a pulling force todetach the barrier wall from the body and pull the detached barrierthrough the wye or tee in the upstream pipe.